


Good speed!

by kuron_10



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Speed Dating, troublesome friends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-26
Updated: 2019-05-26
Packaged: 2020-03-18 00:23:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18975223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kuron_10/pseuds/kuron_10
Summary: He still couldn’t believe it. He – Takashi Shirogane – was taking part in a speed dating event.





	Good speed!

**Author's Note:**

> This was written as a birthday surprise for a lovely friend of mine. Happy birthday <3!

Shiro raised his eyebrows slowly while the woman was getting his application forms ready. Behind her were tons of photos of happy couples – at least he assumed they were. The people were smiling and half of them looked like they were not even faking it.

“Please fill out your contact information correctly. If you have a match, we will send you each other’s phone number and e-mail.”

Shiro nodded cautiously while filling out the application form. He still couldn’t believe it. He – Takashi Shirogane – was taking part in a speed dating event. He was tempted to write down Lance’s number instead of his – a payback because Lance was the one who had registered him in the first place without asking him – but he would not match with anyone anyway, so why bother. He would have his revenge on Lance one day.

“You may take a seat”, the friendly woman pointed to one of the last tables, “You will stay there while your potential partners will come to your table. The waiter will take your order. Enjoy your date night!”

Shiro sneaked over to his table, not daring to look at anyone else in the room. This was humiliating. At least there was only low illumination, so that the couples would only be able to focus on each other and nothing else. Except Shiro’s arm of course, it shone brighter than anything else in the room. Of course everyone was staring at him, the walking lightbulb. Oh how he hated this already.

 _"Don't worry Shiro, they don't bite! Also you have not been dating for years! It's time to join the game again!"_ Stupid Lance!  
Yes, he had not been dating for years – but he had reasons! Before Kerberos he had broken up with Adam, was heartbroken and he thought he would die soon anyway. Then he was abducted by the Galra and during his gladiator days he was too busy to stay alive. And while he was fighting Zarkon he had other things to worry about – and then he was dead. And when he got resurrected, earth was under attack. And then they had to fight Honerva.  
And then he had other things to worry about. It was not that he was alone or with too much time on his hands; the Atlas was always travelling, they were heading to new worlds, were able to meet new species, had to deal with so many new problems! And when they were back on earth – like they were right now – there was so much to do at the Garrison! He had no time for dating.

Not to mention the sheer panic when he thought about it. He had one relationship in his life – Adam. He thought Adam and he would be forever. And honestly he had no idea how he and Adam had managed to become a couple in the first place. Shiro remembered embarrassing stuttering and restless nights, “accidental” hand touching and very awkward first kisses. It was probably the most stressful time of his life. 

He had fought in an intergalactic war and yet he was about to have a panic attack. Dating was pure hell. Why was Lance so worried about him? He was not alone. Yes, he didn’t have family anymore, but the paladins and Coran were his family now! He had friends! He got along with everyone on the Atlas. He was never lonely. He didn't need anyone else in his life. Why did Lance just get to decide that it was time for him to date again?

“What can I get for you?” The waiter looked down on him – literally. Shiro just wanted to crawl under the table.  
“A beer please.”  
“Beer?” The waiter repeated it with a mocking smile and disgust in his voice.  
Why was it so unusual to order beer? Shiro took a quick glance to the neighbour table – damn it. What was that guy drinking? Oh no, wine. Shiro couldn’t stand wine, he always got a headache after the first glass. Not to mention that he was immediately drunk from wine. And that was the last thing he needed right now.

“Just water then”, Shiro wanted to hide even more now.  
“Beer is fine.”  
Stupid waiter… why did he make such a drama? It was just beer. Or… didn’t mankind drink beer anymore? Did something happen? Had earth changed that much in the last years? Or was it just an unusual drink for a first date? For 11 first dates?

Lance would so pay for this!

“I am sure you all know the rules by now”, the woman stepped forward and welcomed them again, “You will now have 5 minutes to talk with your potential significant other before the bell rings and you will meet the next candidate. We have 22 participants, so please look forward to 11 wonderful first dates. Please remember to also take notes between the dates, so that you can decide in the end whom you want to meet again.”

“No one”, Shiro muttered. The waiter put down the beer and frowned yet again. What was wrong with that guy?

Shiro thought his mood couldn’t drop lower when the first dating candidate sat down. “You have forgotten to wear your name tag.”  
Name tag?! Oh yes, he was given that stupid tag. “Oh, I’m sorry”, Shiro held out his hand, “I’m Shiro.” The guy – his name tag revealed his name to be Mark – did not take his metallic arm. Well, if that wasn’t a good start… Shiro let his arm sink.  
“I won’t get an electric shock when I touch it, will I?” Mark asked.  
Shiro raised an eyebrow, “Well, who knows. No one has dared to shake my hand yet.”  
That would definitely not be a match.

Also not Raphael – the second candidate. He was about to faint when he saw Shiro’s arm. The poor guy was a bit overdramatic and couldn’t see or think about blood. The amputated arm was not a good subject, but he could not talk about anything else. Never have five minutes been that long.

The arm seemed to be the only thing the candidates wanted to talk about anyway. And if that topic had been settled within the first 3 minutes, it quickly changed to the scar on his nose – and his grey hair. Not even one of them was interested in his personality. The longer the evening got, the angrier Shiro became. Men were stupid.

He was on his second beer and seventh date when… 

“Captain?!”

Shiro put down his glass. “Curtis?!”

Curtis had the brightest smile on his face when he sat down, “I had no idea you were speed dating.”  
“Neither did I”, Shiro laughed, “Lance thought otherwise.”

Curtis snickered, “Paladin Lance? Well, these McClain siblings… Veronica signed me up for this, she was curious about it.”  
Shiro giggled, “Why didn’t she try it out then?”  
“She says I have to check out how humiliating this is first. Also if there are any dateable men attending.”

Shiro laughed out loud, “And, how humiliating is it for you?”  
“Very”, Curtis rolled his eyes, “First the waiter treats me like some kind of alien because I order beer…”  
“Same!”  
“Is it that weird to drink beer these days?” Curtis shook his head laughingly. “What did we miss while we were up in space?”

“I wonder the same”, Shiro nodded, “It’s so strange. I feel like I do not belong here anymore. Before I was abducted everyone would drink beer. And also these kind of dates are just weird. Speed dating? Only 5 minutes to get to know each other? And even though these are the longest 5 minutes ever, I have no idea who these people are. But tell me, have you found your significant other yet?”  
“The first one told me to please stay away in case I am radioactive, because I have been to space”, Curtis repeated, “The second one told me his mother has sent him here because she thinks it’s time for him to get married. The third one was too shy to say anything. I can’t remember a thing the fourth one said… oh yes, and the guy next to you is actually married, but he thinks his partner is cheating on him with the pastor, so he also tries to cheat on them, but has no idea how to meet other single guys.”

Shiro let his head drop, “Oh man. At least you had learnt something about them. Everyone who comes to this table just freaks out about my arm. One nearly fainted.”  
“Why?”  
“He couldn’t see or think about blood.”  
Curtis snickered.  
“The last one asked me if my arm could vibrate.”

“Hmm”, Curtis reached for his glass and took a sip, “But sir, the real question is, can it?” 

Shiro frowned, “You just called me sir. You can’t do this. We’re on a date.”  
“Well yes, but next week we are on the Atlas again and you are the captain. If I call you anything else but sir, I might have to scrub the floor with my toothbrush.”  
Shiro giggled, “No one ever had to do this on the Atlas before. Not even me when I nearly set the kitchen on fire.”  
“Oh, I remember! Paladin Hunk is scary when he is angry!”

“Or when the Atlas fell into that time loop because Iverson saw something weird on the screen and we all ended up trapped in our bodies 10 years ago!”  
Curtis laughed, “That was the weirdest experience I have ever had – and we have gone through a lot already, even different realities. But I had my braces back!”  
“Your braces! I had my right arm back, including the cramps!”  
Curtis laughed, “Well, excuse me? People could still understand you, no one could understand a word I was saying because my tongue was not used to the braces anymore.”  
“Well… that part is true.”

Curtis snickered while remembering the exhausting and horrible adventure, that had a happy end though, “We were so lucky N-7 had not lost all of her updates and could save us.”  
“See… none of this has led to any consequences. This is nothing more than another adventure we are going through together. Right now we are two desperate souls trapped in the speed dating hell because our friends suck. If anyone hears you calling me sir, it would be weird. Just call me by my name.”

“Okay”, Curtis nodded, “If it won’t be used against me when we are back on the ship.”  
“It won’t.”  
“It’s… it’s weird, you are my boss.”  
“Curtis, this is an order.”

Curtis smiled. He took another sip, nodding slowly.  
“Alright then, Takashi. I might pack another toothbrush though just to be on the safe side.”

Shiro’s eyes widened. 

_Takashi._

When was it the last time that anyone had called him by his given name. It was Adam, wasn’t it? He didn’t think Curtis would call him by his first name – he thought he would just call him Shiro; like anyone else. But Curtis wasn’t like anyone else. 

This was… this was nice. 

_Takashi._

He never thought it would be this nice to hear his name being spoken by Curtis’ smooth voice. But it was. He was smiling without being able to hold back the faint blush on his cheeks. 

“I am sorry you need to move”, the woman had appeared next to them out of nowhere, “The bell has already rung.”  
Bell? Shiro had not heard that stupid bell.  
“But… but we are…”  
The woman shook her head, “I am sorry, the rules want our candidates to meet all of the potential significant others. You know what you have to do at the end if you want to continue this date. But right now I have to ask you to move to the next table.”

Curtis grabbed his beer, “Of course. I am sorry, I missed the bell.”  
He turned to Shiro and mischievously said, “I wish you all the best for the rest of the dates, Takashi.”

 _Takashi._

The butterflies in his stomach were going crazy.

Shiro smiled at him, “Megathrusters are go.” It was the first words Curtis had spoken to him as the captain when they had lift off for the first time – Shiro would never be able to forget them.  
Curtis turned around to him again, “Atlas crew, hold tight.” Shiro laughed and watched him sit down at the new table, introducing himself to the next date. He knew Curtis was nice to talk to – they had talked at the cafeteria before, at the gym, and also on the bridge. But somehow it never had been just the two of them. Somehow they could never talk about anything else but work.

“Hi, I am Louis”, the new guy sat down where Curtis used to sit just one minute ago, “Is this… an arm?” Shiro rolled his eyes. He reached for his glass and took a long sip – he would need another beer soon. The minutes grew longer again, the candidates kept coming, but luckily also going.

Shiro had waited for the bell to ring for the last time – at last! He wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible. He kept looking around if he could still see Curtis, but the damn romantic light kept the room pretty dark, he only saw the judging waiter staring at him. Yes, he had had three beers and no regrets. 

“Would you please fill out this questionnaire?” He looked up and saw that woman again, who handed out the said questionnaires.

Shiro took the sheet of paper from her and quickly started to tick off some answers, not really caring what he was ticking off. How the atmosphere was, how the drinks were (he was tempted to write down the beer was okay), if he felt comfortable. No, definitely not. 

Finally, if he wanted to meet one of the others again. 

Shiro searched for Curtis’ name and there it was. He was about to tick his name off when the panic came back. Was he supposed to tick it off? Did this count as a date in the first place? Or was Curtis just being nice to him? Curtis had no other choice, did he? He was his boss after all – Curtis had said so himself.  
So was it a kind of a date or was it just two colleagues meeting in an awful place and trying to survive?

_Takashi._

Damn it… the way Curtis had said his name… he wouldn’t have said his name this way if it had not been a date, would he? 

“Excuse me”, Shiro raised his arm, “I… I have a question.”  
The woman came back to his table, “Yes?”

“I just wondered… I mean, what happens if I…”  
He pointed to the sheet, “You see, this is a bit complicated. I am not sure I can tick off a name without knowing if the person ticked it off as well.”  
The woman shook her head, “I am sorry, I do not understand the problem? If you want to meet this person again, tick off the name. And if they have also ticked off your name…”

“Well, the problem is, I will see him again either way”, Shiro said, “We work together. So… what if I tick off his name and he doesn’t.”  
“He will never know you have chosen him.”  
“But then I will know that he hasn’t chosen me, won’t I?”

The woman smiled, “Yes. But that’s the risk we all take when we date.”  
“What if this becomes a problem when we work together? If I do not tick off his name I will never learn what he thought about me, and the same goes for him… what if he only ticks off my name because he fears that I might choose him, but actually he does not want to. So either way this is going to be weird, isn’t it?”

The woman smiled, “You are thinking with your brain right now. But this is not how we find love. This is not why you are here.” – No, he was here because Lance was a jerk! – “You have to listen to your heart. Do you want to meet him again – but not as a colleague. This is the only question that you need to answer right now. This will be your answer; and his.”

Shiro groaned. This was definitely not the answer he wanted to hear. This did not help him at all. He stared at his name. The five minutes he had spent with Curtis were better than all the other 50 minutes combined. But they had a lot to talk about after all! They had a lot in common, not only the beer. And they shared the same sense of humour. And the same stupid friends. 

Why did he suck at romance so much? Why didn't he have an idea how dating works? Why did even speed dating turn out to be a problem for him? Stupid Lance and his stupid ideas!

He was the last one to hand in the questionnaire. He would have to give it a last shot, “And you can’t just take a quick look now if he…”  
The woman shook his head, “No. You will be informed by e-mail in case there is a match.”  
Shiro sighed. Well, then there was no choice. 

Patience.  
Patience yields focus after all.

When he left the building, he did not see the tall figure that sat on the bench next to the bar. “Hey.”  
Shiro turned around.

“I thought I had missed you”, Curtis smiled at him, “It took you quite long. Couldn’t say goodbye to the waiter?”  
Shiro felt those stupid butterflies again. He approached Curtis slowly. And he needed an excuse – quickly! “I am quite slow with my hand and there were a lot of questions. I had a lot to say about the beer and the illumination.”  
“I actually wanted to invite you to some ice cream. I thought after such an evening we need something sweet. But the ice cream parlour closed some minutes ago.”

“Damn”, Shiro slouched, “I really would have needed some ice cream.”  
Curtis reached behind him, “I am glad you think so… Because you see, I got you some ice cream, but I am not sure you will like it. They were already out of a lot of flavours and I had to choose quickly.”

Shiro beamed, “You got me ice cream?”  
“I chose dark chocolate and vanilla”, Curtis said a bit shyly, “I was not sure if this is to your liking; I simply chose what I ordered for me as well…”  
“It is”, Shiro carefully took the ice cream tub from him, “I love anything related to chocolate and vanilla.”

Curtis looked very pleased, “Usually I would have chosen strawberries, but they were already out of fruits. And I thought after this night it doesn’t matter anymore - ice cream is ice cream.”  
“Absolutely. Also, chocolate makes everything better”, Shiro agreed. It tasted wonderful – the flavours matched perfectly. Just as he sat down though, he felt a big raindrop on his nose. While he still wondered if that was real, he could already hear the slashes around them. It was not only raining; it was a downpour!

“Oh no”, Curtis laughed, “We are really lucky tonight, aren’t we?”  
They ran to Shiro’s car, laughing while still trying to enjoy their ice cream. Once they reached the car – of course Shiro hadn’t found a parking lot closer to the dating bar – they were soaking wet. 

“I hope you are still giving me a ride back to the Garrison, even though I am a drowned rat”, Curtis laughed as he tried to wring out his shirt before getting into the car.  
“I’m polite”, Shiro said as he started the motor, “I will never leave a date standing in the rain. I will always accompany them home, no matter how bad the date was. Also you have treated me to ice cream, so I owe you a favour.”  
“You are a true gentleman!”  
“Hey, you are wetting my car and I am not saying anything”, Shiro laughed.  
“I was about to offer you to feed you your ice cream while you drive”, Curtis giggled, “But now I think you deserve the melted ice cream on your car seat.”  
“Don’t you dare! I will make you walk back to the Garrison then!”  
“Well, if you can risk to kick your navigator out, fine! Have fun finding the Garrison at night!”  
Shiro laughed, “You are blackmailing me!”  
“Just pointing out the facts!”

All the way back to the Garrison Shiro did not ask Curtis if he had ticked off any names; and not only because they were having way too much fun with the ice cream and with making jokes about the downpour. He did not want to know actually If Curtis had chosen to date him again. He would soon learn it either way. And even if Curtis was not interested in him in that way – he would still always remember the hilarious evening they had together – especially because it would take days until his car would be dry again.  
One day he would thank Lance for it – it did make him come out of his shell after all. Also for one night he did not think about anything related to space or negotiations; he was just a normal man, with normal problems. It was nice to remember that he was also able to enjoy such a normal life.

“So, what will you tell Veronica?” Shiro asked when they reached the Garrison.  
Curtis grinned, “That I had an amazing evening, that I met someone special and that I have already signed her up for the next speed dating.” Shiro giggled. Curtis could be really diabolic – but wait… what if he meant it? What if he had really met someone he would want to meet again and… well… they did have a nice evening after all, didn’t they?

But then Curtis slightly nudged him, “Revenge shouldn’t feel so good, should it? When I sign her up, we should wait outside to see her face when she leaves.”  
Shiro laughed, “I’ll treat you to some ice cream then. And I’ll make sure to bring an umbrella. I still have no idea how Lance will have to suffer though.”  
“We’ll think of something”, Curtis said, suddenly standing still. It took Shiro some seconds to register that this was his door – Curtis had walked him to his room! He would have just walked around the Garrison for hours probably...

“We missed your room”, Shiro muttered.  
“We didn’t”, Curtis said with tenderness in his voice, “I always walk my dates home.”  
The butterflies were back.  
“So 10 more dates to walk home then”, Shiro joked.  
Curtis snickered, shyly backing off, “Yes, and I shouldn’t leave them waiting for so long. So… thank you for tonight. I really had a great time and I would have never expected that.”

“Me too”, Shiro said, “Thanks a lot. I’ll see you tomorrow. If you have walked all of your dates home by then.”  
“I’m always back for paladin Hunk’s breakfast!”  
“You sure about this?”  
Curtis smiled, “Let’s say half past 8 at the cafeteria?”  
“Alright”, Shiro smiled. He wanted to add ‘it’s a date’, but he didn’t. Not yet. Patience. 

Shiro watched Curtis walk back the hall to his own room. That evening really ended like nothing he would have ever expected. Curtis looked over his shoulder twice to wave at Shiro. Only when he reached his door, Shiro retreated to his own room.  
Curtis, hu? He would have never thought this… but until tonight he didn’t even know Curtis was single as well. 

When Shiro came out of the shower, he had three missed calls from Lance and two messages from him.  
_“Heeeeey buddy, how was it?”_  
_”Oh come on, you are already back home! You have to be! You wouldn’t do anything on the first date, would you?”_

Shiro smiled imagining how nervously Lance was waiting for him to answer. He should leave him waiting for the night. But on the other hand, Shiro didn’t want to keep the former paladin worried, so he decided to answer him.  
“I am back in my room, yes. But the date just ended now – in front of my door. I will tell you the details somewhen else though, I am very tired now. Goodnight.”  
_”Oh come on!! What does this mean?! Did you really meet someone?!”_  
_”Shiro? Shiro?! Come on!”_

 

Shiro wasn’t surprised to find 12 more messages from Lance the next morning. But he ignored his messages in favour of one small icon that drew his attention. The dating service had contacted him.  
Shiro took a deep breath. He would see Curtis again at the cafeteria soon. And now he would find out if he would see him as a colleague or as something potentially more.

Another deep breath. Yush, he was ready.  
His heart was beating faster when he opened the mail. 

_“Congratulations! You are one step closer to finding your significant other! We are pleased to announce that Curtis and you have both chosen to date each other again…”_


End file.
